A little soul-searching is common among young adults trying to settle on a new career.

For Sarah Kate Couch, a 23-year-old recent college grad trying to decide if she should go to medical school, that meant a trip across the ocean to help some of the world's sickest patients get the care they need.

Couch, of Fort Myers, recently returned from a 10-month tour on the Africa Mercy, a 400-crew hospital ship equipped with operating rooms and space for 82 patients. The ship was docked at Republic of the Congo, near the equator.

Couch, who did administrative work on the ship — scheduling and whatever paperwork needed to be done — is scheduled to leave today for another tour on the Africa Mercy. This time, the ship is heading to the African country of Benin.

"I wanted to make sure this was something I wanted to do," she said. "This experience has really reinforced that international medicine is the route I'd like to go — to serve the poor and provide medical care to people who don't have access to it normally."

Carson is a graduate of Carson Newman University, a small liberal arts college in Jefferson City, Tenn.

The Africa Mercy is the world's largest nongovernmental hospital ship, according to the charitable group, Mercy Ships, which operates the Mercy and has operated a fleet of similar vessels.

Medical staff provide surgeries to correct cleft lips and palates, perform needed reconstructive surgeries and dental work. The ships also provide medical training to local communities and provide community development projects, including improving sanitation and agricultural practices.

"I wasn't quite sure what to expect. The things they treat are not the things I ever expected to encounter," Couch said. "They're the extremes."

Johnson & Johnson announced last week it is recalling a device used in hysterectomies and to remove fibroids over concerns that it may spread cancer, according to news reports.

The manufacturer halted sales of these laparoscopic power morcellators this spring after the Food and Drug Administration issued a warning about their use. According to the FDA, about 1 in every 350 women getting hysterectomies or what is known as a myomectomy for fibroids have an otherwise unsuspected type of uterine cancer.

"If laparoscopic power morcellation is performed in these women, there is a risk that the procedure will spread the cancerous tissue within the abdomen and pelvis, significantly worsening the patient's likelihood of long-term survival," the April 17 FDA warning states.

I contacted Lee Memorial Health System to see if the devices are used at Southwest Florida's largest hospital system. None were at the time of the recall, according to Kandy Dewitt, director of surgical services.